Loving You 'Til It Hurts
by Live Don't Just Exist
Summary: Loving Nico di Angelo is like letting werewolf scratches heal… It's a gradual, painful process that often leaves scars.
1. Chapter 1

**Title: **Loving You 'Til It Hurts**  
>Summary: <strong>Loving Nico di Angelo is like letting werewolf scratches heal… It's a gradual, painful process that often leaves scars.  
><strong>Author's notes: <strong>These are the missing scenes before HOO, how Will fell for Nico, how he and Clarisse became friends, why he was so hurt at the thought of Nico leaving, why he always has a faraway look in his eyes, etc.

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><p>"<em>They say love is blind and sometimes I'm inclined to agree…<br>Because often the people who are in love fail to see,  
>Someone else looking at them in the same degree."<em>

**By Live Don't Just Exist  
><strong>(All quotes and the story idea o_o)

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><p>Will Solace was never lucky when it came to liking someone, or even loving someone. When he was seven he realized that his best friend Tom was as cute as the class' crush Lucy, he didn't think anything was strange about that until he tried to kiss Tom and was smacked on the face. He lost his friend and was bullied by majority of his classmates, his mom had to transfer them to a different town after that incident. Thankfully, his mom assured him that liking both girls and guys was okay and proceeded to traumatize him with her own escapades as a youth, his dad was just as bad, visiting him in a dream and proceeding to show him about that one time with <em>Hyacinthus where he-<em>

Long story short, Will was comfortable and confident with his sexuality because the two most important people to him had accepted him for who he was. That didn't mean that his life was any easier or that his love life was suddenly interesting or anything. In fact, every time he started liking someone, that person either had someone else or didn't understand bisexuality.

But he didn't realize how unlucky he was in the romance department until he met Nico.

The new demigod brought in by Percy Jackson and escorted to camp personally by his dad was a cheerful Italian kid who asked a lot of questions and was obsessed with a certain card game. Maybe it was because of his cheerful disposition or the way he found everything about being a demigod cool, Will found himself drawn to him.

"I'm Will Solace, son of Apollo." The blond of eleven years old introduced himself to the new camper who grinned at him.

"I met your dad!" Nico had told him excitedly, "He has a great car, it looks nothing like the sun except that it's very bright."

They've only talked for a few times, what with Will being given frequent shifts at the infirmary (despite being so young) and Nico flitting around the camp like a little adventurer and asking every demigod he came across on about Percy and the Greek gods. It wasn't hard to see that the newest camper had a little hero-worship going on when it came to the son of Poseidon.

Of course, this only made Will more determined to befriend Nico. He'd heard from one of the campers that he was a fan of some card game called 'Mythomagic', the son of Apollo was determined to learn it too so that the next time he was free, maybe he could ask Nico for a match.

When he finally got a hang of the game, the first thing Will did was look for Nico. He was walking around camp when he noticed the campers gathered around something. He walked up to them and peeked through the gaps left by the older campers and saw an impressive crack on the ground.

"Nico did this?" The name of the new camper made Will turn around. He saw Annabeth talking quietly with a serious-looking Percy. The son of Poseidon nodded, lips pursed. Unable to help himself, Will walked up to them.

"I'm sorry did you say Nico? As in Nico di Angelo?" Will interrupted as the two older campers looked at him. "Did something happen? Is he alright?"

Ananbeth gave Will a raised eyebrow look to which the son of Apollo ignored. Percy was looking anywhere but at him.

"Percy?"

"He ran away…" The green-eyed boy finally admitted with a defeated tone, shoulders slumped. Annabeth immediately placed a hand on Percy's shoulder, "His sister… Bianca, she didn't make it from the quest, I-" He let out a breath, "I-I failed him."

Will knew he should've said something, comforted Percy, told him that it wasn't his fault or that it happened sometimes. But Will was already turning around, running off to gods-know-where. Annabeth was there anyway, she'd comfort him for Will.

Besides he was too busy thinking about bright grins and frequent questions, about a small boy with dark hair and pale skin who idolized Percy and loved his sister more than anything else in the world.

Will couldn't stop shaking.

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><p>The following year after the incident and the surprising revelation that Nico and Bianca di Angelo were children of Hades, Will still couldn't forget that cheerful kid who looked up to Percy and played mythomagic like a religion. The rest of the camp speculated about Kronos' plans for the children of the Big Three, minus Thalia who had become an immortal huntress, and how Nico would play his part in this war but all Will could think about was where Nico possibly could be, whether he was eating well or where he was sleeping and if he had someone with him. He thought about the son of Hades so much that he found himself zoning out more often than not.<p>

"No matter how good you are at healing, I don't think you should be zoning out when making ambrosia." Michael interrupted his thoughts during his shift.

"Michael," He nodded respectfully at the Apollo cabin head counselor. Michael Yew snorted and ruffled his hair, "Thinking about Nico again?"

Michael and Lee were the only ones who knew about his constant worry about the son of Hades. They never did get why Will was always worrying about him when they barely even talked before but they didn't judge him for it. With Lee gone, Michael was the only one he could talk to about Nico without being judged.

Will nodded quietly as he looked down at the inventory list by the table, "I just- I heard from Percy that he met Nico at the labyrinth and I- I mean, if Nico's forgiven Percy then why didn't he come back with him?"

"Well," Michael sat beside him, "Maybe he had something else to do or maybe his dad needed him for something, who knows."

"He should have come back here." Will said stubbornly, "He belongs here in camp with the other demigods, he shouldn't be out there travelling by himself."

Michael gave his brother a searching look that made the younger one squirm, "Will, about Nico… do you-?"

"No." Will said automatically, avoiding his brother's eyes.

Michael raised an eyebrow in his direction, "You don't even know what I was going to ask yet."

The blonde rolled his eyes, "Michael…"

His older brother let out a small chuckle, "Right, right… seriously though, _do you_? You know, _like him_ like that?"

Will looked at his brother, "No…" At Michael's skeptical look, he sighed, "I don't know. I just _worry_ about him, that's all."

His older brother shot him a smile and patted his shoulder, "Well, that di Angelo is one lucky guy to have someone like you worrying about him." He stood up, "I have to go to a counselor's meeting, want me to send Justin over to help you?"

"Nah, I'm fine. I'm almost finished anyway."

"Okay," Michael made his way outside but then he paused by the entrance, surveying his brother going over the nectar's ingredients this time. "Hey, Will?"

Will looked up, "Hm?"

"Promise me something." His brother said seriously, "When you survive this war, you'll go talk to that Nico kid, alright? Tell him all the things you've been telling Lee and I, about how he should look after himself and how he's welcome at camp."

Will watched him, wide-eyed. "Wha- Why would I-? You're joking!"

"Hey, I'm serious." Michael said with a serious expression on his face to prove his point, "Just promise me, okay? Cabin counselor's orders."

Will blinked at him before nodding slowly.

"Good. I'll see you later at dinner." Michael waved before leaving.

It was only ten minutes later that Will realized what Michael said.

_When _**you **_survive this war…_

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><p>When Michael died, everything around Will was nothing more than white noise. He was only able to hear Kayla's choked words, "Y-You're next in command if something ever happened to M-Michael," A sob broke free from her, "Will, it's your call now."<p>

His awareness of the world shut down. He wanted to scream, he wanted to yell at everyone and tell them that he's not the right choice. He wasn't as good as Michael with the bow, Lee was a better singer than him, Justin was good at making haikus, and Austin was more prophetic than any of them combined-

_I'm just a healer. _He wanted to say, _If something happens to you, if someone attacks you, I can't protect you._

But his siblings were looking at him with tears in their eyes, all of their hands were holding his now. In the white noise, their fear and grief penetrated, their hands were shaking and cold. Will realized he wasn't the only one who was sad, he wasn't the only one who was scared. He tightened his hands around theirs in reassurance.

"We need more people here, call back any of the available healers, I want the archers to fall back to the Empire State Building, Percy said it would the final standoff." Will said as he turned back to look at the injured demigods, "We'll honor Michael after this war's been won!"

The cheer of the Apollo cabin was more subdued than usual and Will went back to healing as much people as he could. His body was on autopilot, ignoring his fatigue and how pale he looked when he passed by a reflective surface. Whenever someone needed a mobile healer to go to a demigod that couldn't be moved, he'd be the one to go with them. He helped in fighting as much as he could, sending a short prayer to his father to make his archery aim strong and true.

He didn't know if Apollo had heard him or if his mind was so focused on destroying the monsters that killed his brother and who knows how many more of his siblings… but not once did Will miss a target that day.

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><p>When Nico came in with overwhelming reinforcements, Will had to stop and stare. The lord of the Dead coming to help his siblings and his siblings' children (whom he despised) was something no one ever expected. Nonetheless, the camp was grateful for the help if their cheers were any indication.<p>

Around him, Will's siblings were letting out cries of relief, hugging each other. No one knew how Nico convinced the most stubborn god of all to fight for them but _he did it_.

"H-He's something else." Kayla cried into his shoulder and Will placed an arm around her, trying to squash down the sudden urge to run up to Nico and hug him for saving them _again_. His heart swelled with a strange emotion.

"Yeah." Was all Will said as he closed his eyes.

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><p>The end of the war was a bittersweet affair. They had lost so many people and a few were still struggling with their lives in the infirmary, it had been a nightmare week for the Apollo cabin who were in charge of taking care of the injured. Every time they lost a camper, Will felt a part of himself break a little more.<p>

What was the point of only being a healer if he couldn't even save everyone?

Something warm was pressed to Will's shoulder, making him flinch and look up. His mouth felt dry as he gaped up at a certain son of Hades.

"Here," Nico said a frown marring his face, a far cry from the smiling kid Will used to know. "You should drink that." He said. He handed him a cup of hot chocolate before he turned and left abruptly.

Will sat there for a few minutes, gaping like an idiot before he realized what just happened. "Damn it!" He groaned as he ran a hand through his disheveled blond hair. Nico had been _right there_ and he had been too _star struck_ to say anything back to him. Not even a 'thank you' or a 'hey' or 'you were so cool back there'.

He buried his face in his hands. _Gods, I'm such an idiot._

"That was di Angelo just now, right?" Will jumped and almost spilled the hot chocolate. He turned and saw Clarisse walking up to him with her arms crossed.

"Clarisse." Will acknowledged. "What are you doing here?" He didn't mean to sound rude but Michael's death was still fresh in his mind. He remembered that the head of the Ares' cabin hadn't gone to their aid earlier because of some stupid chariot.

As though reading his mind, the head of the Ares cabin frowned but her dark eyes were glittering with guilt. "I came to apologize."

Blue eyes looked at her in surprise. The stubborn counselor of Ares' cabin came to apologize? To _him_?

"For what?" He asked.

"You know for what." The daughter of Ares sat on the stairs leading to the infirmary, "For the chariot and the war," She said, "Mostly about the fight with Michael."

Will flinched at the name but said nothing.

"Thanks to Silena, I realized that letting my hurt pride come in between protecting my friends was pretty stupid of me. It took her death and the death of others to get my ass into gear and I-" She let out a shaky breath, "I regret it, I regret everything. I regret that stupid chariot race and that fight with the Apollo cabin, I regret not saying 'yes' when everyone asked me to help them."

Will was still silent, his hands being warmed by the cup Nico gave him. He knew he was shaking slightly but he tried to ignore it.

"So, I'm sorry." Clarisse finally said, "It might not mean much but _I am_. You don't have to forgive me or anything stupid like that, I just- I just wanted you to know that I'm sorry."

"Why are you telling me this?" Will asked in a soft tone, "Is it because I'm the counselor now? Because you can't say it to Michael anymore?"

Clarisse gave him a look, "Don't let being counselor go over your head, it's nothing as complicated as that." She said, "But I guess it's a yes and a no. I'm not apologizing just cause you're the counselor now or anything, I already went to your other siblings and told them sorry too."

Will shot her a surprised look.

"But I'm also apologizing to you guys because I can't apologize properly to Michael now. I mean, I asked di Angelo for help on that one." Clarisse grumbled, "Asked him if it was okay to pass on a message to your brother and to-to Silena yesterday."

Will felt his hear leap to his throat, "Did- did Michael say anything?"

Clarisse snorted but it sounded choked, "The dumbass said he forgave me, said that having regrets wasn't good and that if I really felt bad about it then I should apologize to the rest of you guys too. I was planning to do that anyway, the moron didn't have to say anything."

Will gulped, looking down at his cup.

"He also said," Clarisse continued softly, "That he thinks there's no better counselor for the Apollo cabin than you, Solace." The son of Apollo gripped the cup tightly, "Michael's proud of you, he wanted to say thank you for keeping everyone else safe."

Will let out a pained sound, eyes scrunching closed. Clarisse stayed silent for awhile before Will finally spoke, eyes misty. "Thank you," He croaked, "For telling me this, you didn't have to."

Clarisse gave him a look, "You're as moronic as your brother, of course I had to." She stood up, hands in her jacket. "And if you should thank anyone, it should be di Angelo, he didn't have to be a messenger but he went and passed the message on anyway."

There was silence for several seconds.

Before Clarisse turned she said, "Oh and one more thing… the chariot, it's your cabin's now."

The blonde winced, "Clarisse, I don't want-"

"It's not because I think you guys should have it or anything like that." She glared, "Our cabin doesn't want it anymore not after-" She faltered and took a deep breath, "It's all yours now."

Realizing the daughter of Ares had her mind set, Will just nodded. Clarisse huffed before leaving Will alone on the steps, looking up at the night sky. He put the cup down and listened to the fading footsteps.

He didn't have any food to burn and sacrifice to the gods but Will clasped his hands together and prayed anyway.

"Dad, if you're listening I wanted to thank you for lending me the power to save as many people as I could and if you could, please help me save the rest too." He prayed, eyes closed. "And if you ever go to the Underworld, can you check how Michael and everyone else are doing down there? I know that they're probably in Elysium but-"

_I miss them_. He thought instead, forehead meeting his clasped hands. "Thanks." He whispered.

And even though Nico wasn't his sibling or any of the people Will failed to save, he offered a prayer for him too, albeit silently.

_He's been through a lot and he's suffered more than any of us, _He prayed, _He deserves to be happy too, please let him realize that this is his home too._

And because he knew he didn't have the courage to say it to the son of Hades face-to-face he said out loud to the darkness, "Nico," He called out, eyes still closed. "Thank you."

Silence answered his words.

* * *

><p>"Hey, you should go take a break." Kayla suggested when Will got up from re-bandaging one of Ares' children. He blinked up slowly at his sister.<p>

"Uh," It took him awhile to process what she was saying, "Nah, it's fine, I'm fine without any breaks. Besides, I still have to go over the inventory list before the Stolls leave for a run later-"

His sister shook her head and caught him by the arm, "Justin's taking care of that. Austin and I have the infirmary covered, Damian's heading the rest of the Apollo cabin to their classes, _you_ should take a break."

"But-"

"No buts!" Kayla said, her arms crossed. "Now, out!"

Will held up his hands, chuckling a bit. "Geez, okay. I'm going. Don't forget to that someone from the Athena cabin is scheduled for a check-up later at three."

"Yeah, I know."

"And make sure that the-"

"I get it!" Kayla fumed, "Go or I'll ask dad to put a curse on you."

Will mimed zipping his mouth before going outside, shoulders heavy and eyes burning slightly. He hadn't been sleeping much, taking as many shifts as his siblings would allow him. He wanted to make sure that the campers were healing up nicely and that his brothers and sisters would get the rest they deserved, that's all.

He was on his way to their cabin, thinking of taking a short nap, when he spotted a certain Death Boy sulking in the shadows. The son of Apollo froze, his sleep-deprived mind going on overdrive and thinking up of various greetings (whether to call out loud or not) and approaches (whether to walk up to him or not) but all ending with him wanting to have a small chat with one of the heroes of the latest war.

As he debated what to do in his mind, his eyes scanned the thin figure of the son of Hades. Nico had changed so much in the last few years that something in Will's chest clenched at the thought of never seeing that happy-go-lucky boy anymore.

Nico still wore his favorite aviator jacket but his once dark brown hair and eyes looked black now, especially in the shadows. His skin was as pale as they come and his attitude was a complete 180 to before. Bianca's death had changed the once easily excited kid into a brooding teenager, befitting of a child of Hades, some people would even say.

He wondered if there was a part of Nico that hadn't changed, if he stilled had his mythomagic figures and still loved playing mythomagic. Did his smile still light him up from the inside?

Will's musings were interrupted when he saw Nico lean away from the shadows, eyes focused on a certain someone that just came out of Athena's cabin.

Percy Jackson was talking with Annabeth who playfully punched him in the arm. She rolled her eyes at her boyfriend before leaning in and giving him a kiss.

Will watched Nico's eyes turn a shade darker, shoulders tense and expression unreadable. His mouth was set into a thin line. The son of Apollo froze in reaction.

"Oh." Will said, eyes wide as he watched Nico watch Percy leave. _Oh._ His mind helpfully repeated. Before he knew it, he found himself turning away and heading towards the opposite direction of where Nico was.

It seemed like the way Nico felt about Percy, hadn't changed at all.

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><p><em>It's because you love him. That's why you'll know immediately if the person you love, loves someone else.<em>

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><p>Most of the campers were clearing out of their cabins, getting ready to get back to their mortal lives. Will usually stayed behind in camp sometimes to help around but because of the recent war, most of the campers were going home for a break from the god-half of their lives. Almost no one was staying behind and everyone had healed up nicely since the war so he really wasn't needed much. Besides, the camp would be busy all summer constructing the new cabins.<p>

Will had realized that the last few weeks in camp, after the Battle in Manhattan, had been the most stressful time for him. That's why when his mom had invited him home to spend time with his stepdad and stepsisters, he immediately said 'yes'.

As a healer, he knew that time away from everything would be healthy for him. By everything he meant, being away from the infirmary and… from Nico as well.

It wasn't the son of Hades' fault that Will had suddenly developed confusing feelings for him. It wasn't his fault either that the son of Apollo tended to flinch every time he saw him or that his chest tightened impossibly when he saw Nico give off a rare smile or ordered his worker skeletons around camp.

In those few years, (from the first time Nico stepped into camp and Will wanted to befriend him to now, when he was a hero and Will was just another head counselor of the Apollo cabin) the son of Apollo had always thought about that boy who only had his mythomagic games and his sister left in the world. He'd worried about that boy who'd lost his sister and thrown away his old games, who'd run away into the dark and came out changed. He thought about that boy who wasn't a boy anymore, who was a hero and came back to save the camp and the gods that rejected his father and to an extent him too.

In the past, Will had liked the boy with the wide smile and a million questions for the world.

In the present, somewhere along the way to now, he'd _fallen_ for the quiet boy of darkness who loved someone fiercely for years despite not being loved back, whose smiles were like finding gems in dark sand, who came to all of their rescue even though he wasn't obliged to do so.

And if given the chance, Will would tell him all of these things. If he had the courage he was always lacking, he'd stand in front of Nico and tell him everything Will thought about him, tell him why he liked him, tell him why he should stay…

He'd _ask him to stay_.

He wondered if anyone ever asked him to stay before. Maybe Percy had once, and if the great hero couldn't make the son of Hades stay then Will had no chance.

His feelings for Nico were the cliché of all clichés. Liking (loving) someone who liked someone else. To Nico di Angelo, Will Solace was probably just a background character to Percy Jackson, the infamous hero of Olympus who convinced gods to recognize their children, the first hero to turn down immortality in centuries. Compared to him, what was a meager son of Apollo whose only talent was in healing?

There were a million reasons why he shouldn't tell Nico he liked him. It ranged from the fact that Nico probably didn't know him and he'd just come off creepy and stalker-y, to the fact he knew he had no chance from the get-go so there was no point.

All in all boiled down to the same thing, really. Fear.

Fear of rejection, fear of being hurt, fear of being found out, fear of being pitied.

Fear of not being good enough.

He said he lacked courage but the truth was that he lacked a lot of things. Percy Jackson was brave, strong, and could protect anyone and everyone he loved. Will could only deafen people with his ultrasonic whistle and heal.

Between him and Percy Jackson, there wasn't much of a choice.

"Hey, sorry for the wait." Kayla suddenly tapped him on the shoulder making him jump. His reaction made her frown, "Something wrong?"

"No, I'm fine." He assured as he self-consciously shouldered his bag. "Let's go."

The two of them were walking to the camp borders when they spotted a familiar dark figure, leaning by Thalia's tree. Will's shoulders tensed as Kayla nudged him.

"Look, it's di Angelo. Wonder what he's up to." His sister wondered out loud.

_Probably seeing Jackson and Chase off._ He wanted to say but it felt like his tongue was glued to the roof of his mouth so he settled with a shrug.

"Hey di Angelo, how goes the construction?" Kayla called to the son of Hades who turned to them. Will didn't meet his eyes and looked down at the hill instead, where Percy and Annabeth were having a race to get to their respective parents.

"The Hades cabin construction is going well, but I have to leave the skeletons here." Nico said and Will looked at the other boy who was looking at his sister, "I have to head to the Underworld for a bit, emergency."

"Oh, well good luck. I guess, we'll see you next summer." Kayla said and Nico seemed a bit surprised by those words before nodding. "Let's go Will. See ya' Nico."

"Goodbye." Nico said simply, looking at Kayla and then at Will.

The son of Apollo could feel Kayla giving him an expectant look as he turned to Nico.

A million things to say ran through his mind...

_I'm sorry… about everything._

_Thank you for coming to save us, even though you didn't have to._

_You're a hero, Nico._

_Nico, I-_

…None of which he said out loud.

"Yeah." Will said with a nod, "We'll see you."

A million things he could have said, a million things he could have done...

And not one would have changed the way Nico di Angelo _couldn't see_ Will Solace as Will saw him.

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><p><strong>Author's notes: <strong>Yep, both quotes are mine, I was in 'that mood'. Happy heart break!


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's notes: **I have this headcanon that at some point during House of Hades, Will prayed to Cupid about Nico, which is why the son of Aphrodite took an interest in Nico and shot him an arrow too. The arrow wasn't an arrow that would attract him to Will, it was actually something that would help him _let go_ of his feelings for Percy. The ritual below is something I made up because my research about old love rituals came up 'kapoot'.

**Time Frame: **The cut after the _dream_ is a time skip, it's already _after_ the war with Gaea.

**IMPORTANT: **ADVANCE HAPPY BIRTHDAY (or just Happy Birthday!) **I Am Shibuya's Composer**! *birthday dances* I hope it's your birthday, otherwise I just made a complete fool of myself XD

**Bailci **thanks for being my email pal and giving me an opinion about this story!

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><p><em><strong>Loving You 'Til It Hurts<strong>__  
>To burn with desire and keep quiet about it is the greatest punishment we can bring on ourselves."<br>_― Federico García Lorca, Blood Wedding and Yerma

**By LDJE**

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><p>"<em>Hey Lacy, Mitchell…" Will greeted the two children of Aphrodite who were huddled away from everyone, with a bowl of fire that smelled of incense and a hint of potpourri.<em>

"_Oh, hey Will." Lacy greeted, "You finished talking with the Oracle?"_

"_Does Rachel have any insight on the upcoming war with Gaea yet?" Mitchell asked seriously._

_The head counselor of Apollo's cabin shook his head, "No word from dad, she's getting agitated." He sighed. "We all are." He took in a deep breath, "But let's not think about that right now. Chiron assembled all of us for the campfire tonight to have fun." He reminded them. "You guys seem up to something, what's that?"_

_He pointed at the bowl of fire._

_Lacy giggled, "Oh this, well it's actually sacrificial fire for our brother, Cupid."_

_Will raised an eyebrow at those words, "Cupid? _The_ Cupid?"_

"_Yeah," Mitchell nodded, "Even if a war's coming, love is still our number one priority."_

"_Okay…" Will said with a slightly uncertain smile, "So what does it do?" He kneeled down beside him._

"_It's supposed to grant you luck in love." The daughter of Aphrodite commented, "Creating the perfect fire for Cupid is really hard, there's the whole moon cycle to take into account and then the ingredients and then the right temperature, which is really weird cause it's _fire_-"_

"_Anyway, this is really rare fire magic. Not even Hecate's children can duplicate it." Mitchell said, "It's a direct line to Cupid, so if you have a wish for your love life, you write it down in a piece of paper and throw it here."_

"_But the fire's limited to only three pieces of paper. Mitch and I already put in ours." Lacy giggled, eyes reflecting the fire. "I heard Silena used one before she and Beckendorf got together and a week later they were a happy couple!"_

"_That seems interesting," Will smiled politely but his blue eyes were tracking the flames with interest. The fire was brighter than any he'd ever seen before. It could even be compared to Hestia's hearth._

_Noticing his interested glance, Mitchell and Lacy exchanged looks._

"_Hey, Will, you wanna give it a try?"_

_The son of Apollo blinked in surprise, "What?"_

"_I mean, Lace and I are already finished with it which makes that two, so that means you can put one more wish through." Mitchell offered._

"_But-"_

"_Oh come on," Lacy playfully nudged the flushed son of Apollo on the arm, "You're working really hard in making sure that the infirmary's stock up for the upcoming war and we've seen you working your butt off in archery. Consider this as a thank you for future injuries _you'd_ be healing for us."_

"_I'd rather we don't use any of those supplies." Will said but then at the pleading looks of the two, he sighed, "Guys, I'm sure someone else is willing to use this," He gestured to the other oblivious campers, "Love and I- we don't really mix so well."_

"_Nonsense!" Lacy said placing the bowl of fire in a surprised Will's hands. "We won't take 'no' for an answer." She said already getting up._

_Mitchell did the same, winking at the son of Apollo, "Come now, William, everyone needs a little love in their life." He said before grabbing Lacy and running away from the still stunned head counselor of the Apollo Cabin._

_Will stayed there for a few seconds before sighing and looking down at the bowl of magic fire. "Well," He said as he got up and headed to his own cabin. "It won't hurt to try."_

* * *

><p><em>The son of Apollo entered his cabin, bending down to pick up some of the discarded clothes one of his siblings left lying on the ground. Most of the campers were still outside, soaking up on the cloudless night and (possibly) their last moment of peace.<em>

_Will sat down on the edge of his bed, nimbly throwing the clothes in a nearby laundry basket before placing the sacred fire on the edge of the bed observing it with interest._

Guess, I can't let it go to waste. _He thought as he took out a piece of paper and a pen from somewhere. Being the children of the god of Literature entitled them to endless supplies of writing materials. He tapped his pen on his leg, eyes wistful as he thought about what to write. He knew he'd had to do this fast, since Lacy and Mitchell never _did_ specify how long the fire would last, and also he didn't want any of siblings finding him there, writing a note to Cupid, of all people. Despite being the counselor, he was not immune to the teasing and love songs of his siblings._

_Idly, his mind always helplessly wondered towards a certain son of Hades. With how Nico was now, he'd probably scoff at the mention of Cupid or cringe at the so-called god of Love. He may even laugh at Will for trying out such a sill ritual, asking a god of all people for a better love life._

_He was so distracted with the thought that he realized he'd written something without thinking. He looked down at what he wrote and sighed, cheeks flushing before crossing it out immediately. He flipped to the back of the piece of paper and shook his head._

"_That's stupid," He chastised himself. "Don't write anything stupid." He grumbled as he began to write, instead, about one of his siblings finally getting a chance with one of the campers from Nyx's cabin. It was silly in some camper's eyes, what with Nyx's children being all darkness and night while the children of Apollo were all about sunshine and bright lights. But Will would like to think that when it came to liking someone it didn't matter who your godly parent were, or if the person you liked was your total opposite, or broody, or disappeared and went to the Underworld a lot-_

"_Anyway…" Will said out loud, cutting off wherever his thoughts were going. "That's done." He folded his paper and chucked into the flames with only slight hesitation. The fire flared for a second, turning blue before abruptly going out. The son of Apollo peered into the bowl, looking at the ashes left in the wake of the flames._

_He sighed again and felt a tinge of regret when he saw a small unburned part of the paper, flipped over at him._

_It was a part of NIco di Angelo's name he'd crossed out._

* * *

><p>Will woke up wearily, eyes fluttering open and looking to the side in confusion. The sun has yet to filter through the golden blinds of the Apollo cabin and the cabin counselor sat up automatically, running a hand through is hair as he yawned. <em>What a weird dream, <em>he thought. _Or memory, more like it. _He shook his head at his mind's strange thoughts.

He got up and decided to get something to drink before waking his siblings up for another typical Camp Day.

The war with Gaea had finally been won, camp Half-Blood had found new allies in camp Jupiter, Leo came back after a month of being MIA, most of the campers were healing up nicely, the Apollo cabin was having a back-and-forth medicinal information exchange with their Roman friends, Capture the Flag was finally back on, _and,_ best of all, Nico finally decided to stay.

But-

Will placed his half-empty glass on the side tables, pinching the bridge of his nose at the sudden headache.

Of course there was always a _but_.

He ran his hand through his disheveled hair and looked at their schedule of activities today. To his surprise, it was a rare day off at camp, they had no archery, literature, or canoe lessons or medical meetings and/or seminars that morning. And in the afternoon, they only had rock-climbing and hand-to-hand combat. He looked around at his siblings who were all, miraculously, still asleep and decided. with no trouble, to let them sleep in.

He smiled at them fondly before heading to the bathroom to take a shower, intent on grabbing his bow and arrows after for a little shooting practice.

He needed to clear his head for awhile.

* * *

><p>Will lost track of time in the archery field.<p>

All he knew was that the sun was high up in the sky, filtering through the rustling leaves of trees and hitting the ground in beautiful patterns. Noises of bustling campers were starting all around him, cabin doors being opened, a pig squealing somewhere in the direction of Hecate's cabin, and loud laughter came from the Hermes' cabin.

Will let out a puff of breath, shoulders burning pleasantly at his morning exercise. He wiped at his mouth with his front shirt, looking at his target dummies, all of which had at last five arrows sticking out of their hands and legs, but totally missing their vital organs. He didn't know if it was because he didn't want to permanently damage anyone whenever he shot, or if he just lacked accuracy.

"Not bad, Solace." Someone called behind him and as always, when that voice permeates his hearing Will froze, his shoulders tensed and his heart thumped like crazy. He took a deep breath and turned to give the son of Hades a small smile.

"Isn't it a bit too early for you to be up, di Angelo?" He teased lightly, almost easily, earning him an unimpressed frown. Despite his nonchalant smile and seemingly relaxed posture, his heart was beating twice as fast as before. Thankfully, he had long mastered the art of arranging his face to a suitable expression. He'd been working on it since he became head counselor, needing to exude warmth, calm, and reassurance for his siblings and to constantly mask his pain or worry whenever someone mentioned Nico or whenever he caught a rare glimpse of the son of Hades. "Thought you weren't a morning person?"

"Just because I sleep in and can't get up at the crack of dawn, doesn't mean I'm not a morning person." Nico argued and Will forced his eyes to look away at the almost pouting expression, thankful for his tanned skin which hid his blush.

"You sleep in 'till two in the afternoon," Will said casually, "And you're always grumpy if you _do_ wake up before noon. Those are signs of _not_ being a morning person." He said as he took out another arrow, tested the sharpness of its tip, before he notched it in the bow, pulled, and then released. The arrow landed neatly on the dummy's chest, a hair's away from its supposed heart. The son of Apollo thought it ironic that it landed there while he was talking with _Nico_ of all people.

"We can't all be peppy, morning people like the children of Apollo." His dark counterpart grumbled, and despite the fact that he had his back to him, Will knew that Nico just crossed his arms in petulance. "It's unnatural."

"Says the guy who summons skeletons and transports himself using shadows."

"Hey!" Will looked back to see the tips of Nico's ears turning red, "At least I don't need to sing just to heal stuff! It's girly like that movie with that long-haired girl and the guy with a weird nose."

"One, you don't even heal anything; two, I'm the son of Apollo, the god of _music_ and _healing_ so it's a given I heal with _music_; three, it's _humming _not singing; and four…" Will raised an incredulous eyebrow at Nico's direction, "You watched Tangled?"

Nico's flush deepened and Will couldn't help but smother his chuckles. "Not the point."

"Of course." Will said raising both hands in mock surrender before turning around to get his arrows and try his target practice again. He caught Nico frowning when he placed the arrows back into the quiver, all except for one, which he notched into his bow as he walked back to take another shot.

"You're not heading out to eat?" Nico asked uncertainly.

_Depends,_ Will wanted to say, _Is that an invitation?_ But before he could voice out these exact words, a certain son of Poseidon came up to them suddenly, slinging a friendly arm around the son of Hades, who jumped at the sudden contact.

"Nico!" Percy said cheerfully, "It's rare for you to be up so early! Is the world ending again?"

"Jackson," Nico said in a surprisingly calm tone. The old Nico Will knew, would be throwing a fit and sending an army of skeletons to chase whoever dared touched him. But then again, this _is_ Percy Jackson. Will turned back to his archery ignoring the pang in his chest, "Get your hands off me or I swear I'll summon a zombie to drag you back into the Underworld." His voice held no real threat in it though. Will would bet that if _he_ was the one who had his arm slung around Nico's shoulder like that, the son of Hades would probably have castrated him by now.

"Been there, done that." Percy waved him off easily, but nonetheless let go of the younger teen at his demand. "Anyway, I'm heading out to meet Annabeth at the dining pavilion. We should go together." He said and then he turned to Will, whose back was turned to them, "Will too, of course."

"I'm fine." Will said as he exhaled and at the same time, he let the arrow go. It whistled through the air and embedded itself into the dummy's heart, making it topple backwards at the sheer force.

Nico blinked in surprise while Percy whistled lowly. "Wow, wish I was that good at archery."

"I'm just average next to my siblings." Will admitted modestly.

"Sure, sure. Well, I'll leave you alone to practice then. Nico, you coming with?" Percy asked the son of Hades who was looking at Will with pursed lips and dark eyes.

"You haven't had breakfast yet." The son of Hades said it like a statement and not a question. Will's lips twitched helplessly.

"No." He admitted.

"Then you should come with us." Nico persisted and when Will met his eyes, he looked to the side. "I mean, you don't get to tell me about eating healthy and eating more when you're skipping breakfast. Lead by example."

"I didn't say I was skipping," Will said defensively but already, he had relaxed his grip on the bow. "I was planning to eat later."

"Eat _now_."

"Is that an order?"

"Doctor's orders."

"You're not a doctor." Will pointed out with a smile and Nico snorted but his dark eyes were amused. Percy was looking at the two back and forth like they were playing an interesting game of ping pong.

"Neither are you but I let you get away with saying that anyway." He shot back in an unspoken challenge.

"Oh _contraire_, my online medical degree and PhD would like to rebut that statement." The Apollo head counselor said as he headed to the dummy and took out the arrows to place them back into the quiver, slinging his bow over his shoulder. The small, approving smile on Nico's lips made the uncomfortable churn in his stomach worth it.

"It's probably fake."

"It is, but I'm still a better doctor than half of the 'real doctors' out there." Will said as the son of Hades snorted, deciding not to contest. Nico gestured for Percy to lead the way. The son of Poseidon shot the two a fond smile and a slightly suspicious look. Nico seemed oblivious to the observation from the older teen while Will hid his tension by gripping his bow tightly, a fixed smile on his face. Percy's concentrated look melted away.

The son of Apollo's shoulders slumped from relief. He worried for a second there that his attachment to Nico had been too obvious in their usual banter. Noticing his slumped shoulders, Nico gave him a glance.

"Everything okay?"

Will looked at the dark-haired teen beside him, unspeakable fondness and warmth creeping in his chest accompanied by the now familiar churn in his stomach.

He thought about telling Nico about his dream, about the almost wish he made to _Cupid of all people_, about chickening out at the last minute and writing something else (would Nico laugh at him? Be surprised?). He thought asking Nico if he still played mythomagic, if they could have a match sometime, despite his rusty skills (would he say yes? Or would he claim that he didn't play it anymore and call it childish?). He thought about telling Nico about being worried about him for years: if he ate enough, if he was okay or lonely, if he ever thought about Camp-Halfblood or him in those few years away (probably not but it was nice to think that maybe he did). He wondered if the Nico of right now thought about camp as home yet.

Will wanted to say all these things (and more) but he bit the inside of his cheek and tucked the unspoken words away in his heart, like he did with everything else that meant something to him.

"I'm fine, just hungry I guess." The medic said instead with an easy shrug and Nico gave him a look that clearly said he didn't believe him but hey, the son of Hades wasn't one to talk. He'd been keeping things to himself almost his whole life, so he can't judge.

So Nico said nothing and for that, Will was more than grateful.

* * *

><p>Being around Nico and pretending not to be affected by his presence was harder than he thought. He'd been used to the teen barely showing his face around camp, pining and worrying about him day after day. But to have the son of Hades suddenly here all the time, helping out and even teaching sword fighting, and suddenly, just like that, all he had to do was walk to the Hades cabin and extend an invitation and he'd have Nico for a day.<p>

He'd think he was dreaming but he'd already pinched himself and his raw cheeks were pretty sure he was awake.

If he didn't know any better, he'd think that the Aphrodite's Cupid ritual actually worked, and that the god of Love was on his side for a change. But he dismissed the thought as soon as it came to him, because _one_, he didn't even wish for this, he _almost_ wished for it but didn't, and as a result his brother was dating the Nyx child he'd been crushing on (which made Will happy and a bit jealous at the same time) and _two_, this wasn't really any different from before. He was still pining over a hopeless cause and the only difference was that Nico was actually around to pine about.

But Cupid or no Cupid, his oblivious crush was finally spending time in camp, gaining some much needed weight, and was _not_ out there by himself doing gods-know-what. It made Will happy. It was what he'd been praying and waiting for ever since Nico ran away after Bianca's death.

However, in a way, it was difficult for him too. Being in Nico's presence and pretending to look at him as nothing more than a friend; to reach out and pat him on the shoulder or to brush his hand on his elbow or hand without lingering too long. No matter how much he pushed back or ignored his doomed attraction, something in his chest twisted when Nico accidentally stood too close (or not close enough) to him.

Being near him hurt.

And fighting against how he felt was tiring.

But he didn't want to push his feelings to Nico's way. He didn't want to break whatever fragile trust and bond they had between them, the friendship that was barely there, built up by Nico's snark and his bossy orders of constant worry.

Worse of all, he didn't want Nico to run away from him.

Nico ran away from his feelings, his past, from Bianca, from home, from could-be friends, from Percy Jackson and every other demigod, Roman and Greek. He ran away from Will too, after the Octavian debacle and once, when Will was eleven and waited for Nico with a mythomagic deck in his hand.

He didn't want that to happen again or ever, as a matter of fact. So if holding his tongue and stomping on his own heart is all it takes to have Nico around, then by gods that's what he would do.

Of course, it only takes a handful of days for _that_ plan to go spiraling out of control. Demigods, after all, had the worst luck. Will was stupid to think he'd be an exception. Despite his resolve to shove down the unneeded attraction for a certain son of Hades, things went to hell fast on their first Capture the Flag after the war with Gaea.

Being the head healer of the Apollo cabin, it was already given, from the very start, that Will Solace and a handful of Apollo's children would only be half-participating in the games. Despite being on the side of the Ares cabin (along with Hades, Zeus, Aphrodite, and a handful of others), it was understood from the very start that Will Solace's job was to make sure that no one got too critically injured during the fight. Knowing the demigods and taking into account their ADHD, and with _this_ being the first Capture the Flag of the season, things were bound to get bloody and rowdy fast. They had first-aid in small packs strapped to their belts, nectar, and unicorn draught in their water bottles and tumblers, and ambrosia in zip locked bags.

This was a smart move on their part because with _all_ of the Big Three's sons in the fray, it wasn't really all that surprising that things got out of hand fast, only minutes after the shrill whistle that signified the start of Capture the Flag.

"What's the situation? Where is it happening?" Will shouted over to Justin, who was the one in-charge of communication. He was bent over a puddle of water, one of the panicking campers having _Iris Messaged_ them in panic. How did they get a rainbow to form at night was beyond Will, probably something to do with Nyx's children's help or maybe his aunt Artemis had a hand in it. Still, it was convenient to have an _IM version night_ when they could barely stand to be a foot from a regular phone without attracting monsters to them.

"Zephynos' creek." Justin replied and he raised his voice when lightning flashed in the sky, followed quickly by an ominous _boom_(!) of thunder. Several campers jumped at the sound, and not far, dark clouds began to gather. "Jason, Nico, and Percy are getting out of control, they got hit by some sort of- of-" There was some fast-paced talking with the person on the other end of the IM. "Some sort of ball? One of the Hecate's children's magical, modified sphere things. Anyway, Jake says it's not looking good."

The head counselor of the Apollo cabin swallowed back his automatic worry for a certain son of Hades as he shouldered his first-aid knapsack, "How many are injured?"

"Eight to ten with minor injuries, scratches, sprained ankles… Clarisse with a possible concussion." Justin said gravely, "Apparently, she tried to stop Percy and the others, which was reckless, I mean, Clarisse is _good_ but when the sons of the Big Three get fighting? You usually run the other way."

The ground rumbled at his brother's words, as though to prove his point.

Will pursed his lips, "You know how she is." He turned back to his siblings and yelled, "Everyone got their first-aid packs?" Nods and 'yes' answered him, "Good, we're heading to Zephynos' Creek!" He turned to the Ares bunch, "Evacuate other demigods, tell them to keep away from Zephynos' creek, alright?"

There was another flash of lightning and a boom of thunder than had Ares' children scrambling away to follow instructions.

"Okay guys, let's move out!"

The Apollo cabin scattered into the trees, running towards the creek as fast they could. Just as they did so, the sky rumbled and rain began pouring down in fast torrents. Will looked up at the sky warily.

He hoped they could get to the creek in time, without anybody getting fatally injured in the meantime. Sending a brief prayer to his father, Will trained his sight forward, pale blue eyes steely in determination.

* * *

><p><strong>Notes:<strong> Cupid doesn't grant all wishes, just those he deemed interesting. Also, the time Will made his 'wish' the seven of the Prophecy were just heading to get Diocletian's scepter, so it was before Nico's infamous confrontation.

**Author's notes: **Sorry for the late update, exams and business education week and school and _life_. Next update aim is Forget-Me-Not Black. Thanks for your support and happy birthday **todaymakestwohundredandfiftyfive** againor should I say **I Am Shibuya's Composer**! Thank you very much for being you! XD


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